August 2021 Federal Employment Law Training Group Newsletter
The Answer is Still ‘No’
Every couple of weeks, we receive a call or email from someone asking, in some version, whether it’s truly illegal for a Federal employee to use marijuana. We always tell them we can’t dispense (haha, get it?) legal advice over the phone, but it doesn’t stop them from asking. Some memorable questions include whether getting high in Canada would preclude a Federal employee from being disciplined in the U.S., if being very tall and therefore more susceptible to getting high from secondhand smoke is a valid defense to failing a drug test, and whether it is against the law for a Fed’s spouse to grow marijuana in the home and sell it for profit.
We’ll tackle this topic in detail in a session called High Times and Misdemeanors: Weed and the Workplace during our second annual Federal Workplace: Accountability, Challenges and Trends virtual showcase the last week of September. Plus we’ll look at timely challenges such as Covid-19 EEO issues, medical requirements, re-boarding employees, and more.
This month’s newsletter features stories on an important Fed Circuit decision, vaccination requirements, and much more.
Take care,
Deborah J. Hopkins, FELTG President
Undoing the Last Four Years: Federal Circuit Clarifies the Burden of Proof in VA Discipline
By Deborah Hopkins, August 13, 2021 Over the last four years, the VA has enjoyed a lower burden of proof in taking disciplinary actions against employees covered by the VA Accountability and Whistleblower Protection Act, 38 USC 714. Indeed, Congress passed this law in...
The Good News: If Feds Want to Force You to Discipline Them for Disobeying Mask, Testing, and Vaccine Rules, You May Do So
By Ann Boehm, August 18, 2021 I'm pretty sure that you, my FELTG friends, are aware that the Biden administration issued some strong guidelines on vaccines, masks, and COVID-19 testing over the past few weeks. And along with this guidance has come direction from the...
Averting Retaliation: Fear is OK, but Don’t Act on Anger
By Dan Gephart, August 18, 2021 I remember very little about second grade, but I can vividly recall sitting in class when my fellow classmate Teresa C. tapped me on the shoulder and very matter-of-factly said, “I know you did it.” “Did what?” I replied. “You murdered...
What A Long, Strange Trip It Has Been
By Meghan Droste, August 18, 2021 Litigation, even when it all goes according to plan, can end up being a long and winding road. And when it doesn’t go quite as it should … well, a long, strange trip is one way to describe what can happen. Randolph A. v. Department...
Top 10 Tips From the Other Side
By Meghan Droste, August 18, 2021 The time has come, FELTG readers, for my final Tips from the Other Side. It has been a pleasure providing you with insights on what to do, and what not to do, and how to do the best job possible when handling a variety of EEO-related...
And Now a Word With … Marcus Hill, on Resolving Conflicts Before They Lead to Litigation
By Michael Rhoads, August 18, 2021 ‘She hit me!’ ‘Don’t touch me!’ ‘I’m not touching youuu…’ ‘You’re so annoying!’ My children are now out of diapers and forming their own opinions and developing their own interests. Among the three of them, they are a fun-loving,...
Establishing Conduct Expectations: A Sample Policy
By Barbara Haga, August 18, 2021 After the last column was published, I heard from a practitioner from one of those agencies that didn’t have a lot of written guidance on conduct issues. She was asking if I had a sample of such a set of expectations. I didn’t have a...